Spectral phase interferometry for direct electric field reconstruction of ultrashort optical pulses

Abstract

We present a self referencing interferometric technique for measuring the time dependent intensity and phase of ultrashort optical pulses. The apparatus requires no moving components and the phase retrieval procedure is direct (noniterative). The technique can be used to characterize pulses from the ultraviolet to the infrared. We apply the technique here to characterize the second harmonic pulses generated from the output of a Ti:Sapphire regenerative amplifier.